Chapter 51 – Past Matters

The commotion on Guiming Lake still chilled Cui Ti’s heart when she thought about it. Knowing that the person in front of her had a soft heart, she lowered her gaze and smiled faintly. “If I said I was wronged, would you believe me?”

How could she not believe what she had seen with her own eyes?

Pei Xuan held her tighter, a flood of thoughts rushing through her mind. “Anything you say, I’ll believe.”

“Including Dou Qingyue?”

Pei Xuan’s heart sank at her words. “Younger female cousin, she…”

“I don’t like her character,” Cui Ti said, looking into her eyes. “She appears frail on the outside but is malicious within. This might be different from the Dou Qingyue you know, but what I see with my own eyes, I won’t wrong her by saying it.”

Today’s disaster, if it weren’t for Dou Qingyue fanning the flames, the Young Prince, no matter how lustful, wouldn’t have lost his composure in public.

So many noble ladies, yet he recognized only her when drunk…

Cui Ti poked Pei Xuan in the chest with a fingertip. “I don’t want to speak ill of her, but my eyes might be blind, my heart is not.”

She was very annoyed.

She also wanted to see how Pei Xuan would react to these words.

“She likes you.”

“What?”

“Dou Qingyue, she likes you, envies me, can’t tolerate me.”

Pei Xuan’s face visibly darkened, holding her with a heavy heart.

“Are you angry?”

Cui Ti kissed her cheek. “Even if you’re angry, I have to say it. She covets you, and for that alone, I find her unbearable.”

As dusk fell, Cui Ti went to bathe, leaving Pei Xuan sitting in the chair, lost in thought.

That night, it was rare that Cui Ti didn’t snuggle into Pei Xuan’s arms but slept facing the wall, deeply asleep. Pei Xuan also didn’t sleep well.

Perhaps influenced by what she had seen and heard during the day, thoughts in the day bring dreams at night, but the dreams were nightmares.

“Xingguang?”

The moon was bright outside the window, the night nearly over. Cui Ti urgently shook her shoulder, and Pei Xuan slowly opened her eyes, a flash of sorrow crossing them.

“Ah!”

Cui Ti was startled by her and forgot her anger, hurriedly asking, “What happened?”

Pei Xuan held her forehead with one hand, her palm damp with sweat. She found it strange and, upon reflection, couldn’t recall anything specific, only feeling lingering fear, as if a fierce fire had once burned in her heart.

“Niangzi?”

“I’m here.”

Cui Ti asked softly, “Were you having a nightmare?”

Pei Xuan was startled. She didn’t want to describe the panic and sorrow she felt upon waking from the dream. She also felt it was wrong to leave her Niangzi worrying without a proper explanation the night before. She quickly said, “I didn’t disbelieve you; it just felt sudden.

“A Yue has been weak and sickly since childhood. Both the Dou Family and the Pei Family have cherished her like a precious gem. In name, I am her ‘older male cousin,’ yet she has always been very considerate towards me. Our bond is deep. I never thought of it as ‘romantic feelings,’ whether between a man and a woman or between two women. When you said she covets me, it was hard for me to accept. When you said she was bad, I…”

“Don’t think about it. If you trust me, just be more cautious in the future.”

Pei Xuan felt her head throbbing from overthinking. “You mustn’t overthink either. She is a younger female cousin, and you are my Niangzi. Even if she were good, she couldn’t compare to you in the slightest.”

“Really?”

Pei Xuan nodded seriously, her expression earnest and obedient. This filled Cui Ti’s heart with tenderness. She reached out to tuck the blanket around Pei Xuan. “Shall we go back to sleep?”

Pei Xuan buried her face in Cui Ti’s neck, inhaling her fragrance deeply, and soon fell asleep.

Although Pei Xuan didn’t mention it, Cui Ti’s encounter yesterday had left her feeling uneasy about Dou Qingyue. So, when her aunt visited, she wasn’t as warm as usual.

That morning, Madam Dou had gone to Sushe Villa. By chance, she stumbled upon her daughter in a private conversation with one of Prince Huai’s literary scholars. Initially, she thought her daughter had fallen for someone. However, as she listened, she overheard a plot to ruin someone’s reputation.

She was both furious and anxious.

Madam Dou recognized the scholar. He had once been supported by the Dou Family, who had helped him gain admission to a prestigious academy and achieve scholarly success.

Realizing her daughter’s dangerous obsession with Pei Xuan had reached a terrifying level, Madam Dou was deeply worried. After much deliberation, she decided to visit her nephew at Sushe Villa.

“Xuan’er, please forgive your aunt for this sudden visit. I have a favor to ask.”

Pei Xuan smiled and asked, “What is it, aunt? Please feel free to speak.”

“It’s about Yue’er.”

Upon mentioning Dou Qingyue, Pei Xuan frowned slightly. “What about Qingyue?”

Madam Dou wasn’t one to beat around the bush, especially with family. She quickly explained her intentions. Pei Xuan hesitated.

“Xuan’er, please help your younger female cousin, help your aunt. She’s of marriageable age, and delaying further would be detrimental to everyone involved. Among your many peers, there must be someone suitable.”

Madam Dou was determined to end her daughter’s unrealistic obsession by having Pei Xuan arrange a suitable match.

“Alright.”

After seeing her aunt off, Pei Xuan frowned in deep thought, agreeing that her aunt made a valid point.

She already had a wife. If her younger female cousin harbored feelings she shouldn’t, it would be better for her to marry sooner rather than later.

This would also prevent any further complications for her Titi.

With a fiancé, her younger female cousin wouldn’t be able to focus her attentions on her.

Pei Xuan thought it was a good idea.

Coincidentally, shortly after Madam Dou left, Song Zizhen came knocking, intending to sound Pei Xuan out.

Yesterday, at Guiming Lake, he had caught a glimpse of several noble ladies but was particularly taken by Miss Dou’s frail charm. He had been restless all night, and at dawn, he showed up with dark circles under his eyes, asking his friend to play the role of the Matchmaker God.

Pei Xuan couldn’t help but laugh. “Are you sure about this?”

Song Zizhen nodded vigorously. “Absolutely sure! You have your lovely wife in your arms; don’t leave your brother to sleep alone!”

His righteous plea made Pei Xuan smile. “Then I’ll give it a try?”

Song Zizhen beamed with joy and generously offered his family’s treasured wine as a gift.

While the Dou couple was busy planning their daughter’s marriage, Prince Huai, Xiao Jingcan, was severely reprimanded by the Chancellor. Before the day was over, Pei Xuan also reported the Young Prince’s misconduct.

With both father and son taking action, even if His Majesty wished to shield the Young Prince, he had to give the Pei Family the respect they deserved. Thus, he found a reason to send his adopted son away from the capital, out of sight and out of mind.

While His Majesty was relieved, all the trouble fell upon Dou Qingyue.

She had hoped to use the Young Prince as a sharp tool for her schemes. Unexpectedly, the Pei Family protected their own and had him exiled eight hundred miles away.

Without a useful weapon and hearing that her mother was arranging her marriage, and upon finding out from her inquiries that her “older male cousin” was the one matchmaking, Dou Qingyue spat out blood in her boudoir.

“Miss?”

“Shut up!”

She stared at her reflection in the bronze mirror, unable to fathom why she was considered inferior to Cui Ti.

In her previous lifetime, when the blind woman died, her cousin was so enraged that he wanted her to be buried with Cui Ti. For the first time, Dou Qingyue saw Pei Xuan’s eyes filled with a murderous intent.

Those hands gripped her neck so tightly that she was genuinely going to die.

And she did die.

Before her death, the look in Pei Xuan’s eyes was as if she were looking at something filthy.

Logically, having died once, she should be too scared to provoke the one who killed her. But Dou Qingyue was an exception.

Dou Qingyue was never a good person; her heart was black, her hands ruthless. No matter how heartless Pei Xuan was, she liked her. This obsession was so deep that she was willing to risk being strangled again just to see if she could win Pei Xuan’s affection in this lifetime.

She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, thinking about her beloved, feeling both pain and a twisted sense of satisfaction.

Little did she know, the immortals in the Ninth Heaven were sighing in regret:

“How can Fairy Qingyao be so oblivious? It’s well-known that the Literature Star has deep feelings for that rabbit spirit. She’s already harmed the reincarnated rabbit spirit once and still won’t give up.”

The Matchmaker God, dressed in a bright red robe, sat under the marriage tree. Disliking Fairy Qingyao, he spoke harshly: “Let her be! Anyway, the Literature Star’s past-life imprint has already loosened. She won’t be able to harm anyone again.”

Fairy Qingyao was an immortal grass planted by the Ink-washing Pool of the Literature Star Palace. Bathed in its aura daily, she developed an infatuation.

Seeing the Literature Star secretly admire the rabbit spirit through countless reincarnations, one day she descended to the reincarnation platform without informing the other immortals, was born into the Dou Family, and became Pei Xuan’s younger female cousin.

However, because she forced her reincarnation without stabilizing her powers, she damaged her heart meridian in the process, resulting in a frail body.

In her previous lifetime, out of jealousy, she drowned Cui Ti in a lotus pond. After the crime was discovered, she died at Pei Xuan’s hands. In this lifetime, she still hadn’t learned her lesson.

It truly fulfilled the saying—seeking one’s own death.

Amidst the immortals’ discussions in the Heavenly Realm, Pei Xuan was staring blankly at the lotus pond within the Imperial Palace.

The pond was in full bloom, a beautiful scene, yet inexplicably, it filled her heart with dread.

“Imperial Lecturer Pei? Imperial Lecturer Pei?” The Crown Prince called repeatedly.

Pei Xuan felt a dizzy spell, stepped back a couple of steps, and barely managed to stand firm. She raised her hand and said softly, “I am fine, Your Highness, thank you for your concern.”

“Are you really fine?”

“I am.”

She didn’t look fine. The Crown Prince, not daring to continue the conversation, instructed a palace attendant to escort her home.

“Young Madam, the Gentleman has returned.”

“The Gentleman was escorted back.”

“What?”

Cui Ti hurriedly got up.

Bai Tang helped her, and the two of them rushed outside.

“Young Madam, I’ve brought Gentleman Pei back for you.”

Cui Ti thanked the palace attendant and, after seeing them off, turned back to wipe the sweat from Pei Xuan’s forehead. Seeing her drenched in sweat, she instructed the servants to prepare more ice chests for the room.

“Niangzi…”

Pei Xuan’s head hurt as if it were splitting open, and she staggered. She kept seeing a lotus pond swaying before her eyes.

She waved her hand, but the illusion wouldn’t go away.

“Xingguang, Xingguang!”

Mustering some strength, she reached out and touched Cui Ti’s cool hand. The next moment, the illusion changed shape, and she watched helplessly as ‘Cui Ti’ was pushed into the water, screaming for help that went unanswered.

“Titi!”

She suddenly tried to jump into the water to save her.

Seeing her like this, as if possessed, the servants at the villa were in a panic. Some went to fetch a doctor, while others ran to the Chancellor’s Residence to report the situation.

With the help of Bai Tang and several others, Cui Ti managed to bring Pei Xuan inside. Even lying on the bed, Pei Xuan was restless, flailing her arms and muttering incomprehensible words.

“Has the Gentleman been possessed?”

“Possessed?”

Cui Ti’s face was pale, and she clung tightly to the person on the bed. A tear slipped from her eye, falling silently onto Pei Xuan’s lower lip.

The tear was salty.

The touch of reality shattered the terrifying illusion. Pei Xuan’s eyes cleared, and she saw Cui Ti, safe and sound, right in front of her. Trembling, she pulled her into a tight embrace.

Her body was shaking violently, leaving Cui Ti puzzled.

When Madam Pei arrived with the doctor in a hurry, her “good son” was sitting calmly on the bed, being fed by her daughter-in-law.

Madam Pei looked bewildered. “What happened to Xuan’er?”

Pei Xuan’s face alternated between red and white. Not wanting to admit that she had been seeing things, she swallowed the porridge in her mouth and said tactfully, “I haven’t been sleeping well these past few nights.”

This was half true, half false. Seeing that she didn’t intend to say more, Madam Pei didn’t press further and exchanged a meaningful look with Cui Ti.

That night, Cui Ti indulged Pei Xuan’s whims. Lying on top of her, she whispered, “Did something happen during the day?”

Pei Xuan sighed. “In your strange dream, did you see who pushed you into the pond?”

Cui Ti felt a pang of regret and shook her head. “I didn’t.”

After a long silence, Pei Xuan, restless, stroked her snowy back. After much hesitation, she finally said, “What if I told you I saw it?”